Intertidal - by Yuvan Aves (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Blending deep natural history with personal reflection and environmental activism, Yuvan Aves chronicles the coastal ecology of Chennai, India over two years, focusing on the "in-between" spaces where land meets sea.

Through a series of meditations, Intertidal invites us to see beyond the binaries of mindscape and landscape, sea and coast, self and other, and to live in deep animism amid all of life. We hear frog calls through the night, spot butterflies miles into the ocean, and contemplate the composting abilities of worms.

Dream-like and precise, Intertidal describes communities standing together to preserve the human and non-human inhabitants of the coast and the marsh, with a mindfulness toward the fragility of ecosystems.

Review Quotes

Praise for Intertidal

"Intertidal is a magnificent achievement; a book that sings and pulses with the singular, generous vision of its remarkable author." --Robert Macfarlane, author of Is A River Alive?

"The voice of a new generation of Indian naturalists...Ardent, informed, unafraid to confront the mess we've made-and are still making-of our landscapes." --Pradip Krishen, author of Trees of Delhi

"Through his interactions with the tiniest life forms and observations of every tidal shift, Yuvan paints a landscape of beauty and fragility. Every word is an expression of love for creation that also beseeches us to awaken to the ecological crisis that is at our doorstep." --T.M. Krishna, musician, author, activist

"This is a startlingly brilliant and moving debut, written in pellucid prose as clear and inviting as a rock pool, as calming as the lapping of the sea on the shore, and as hopeful as a new dawn on the Coromandel coast." --William Dalrymple, author of The Anarchy

About the Author

Yuvan Aves is a writer, naturalist, educator and environmental defender. He is the author of two books on ecology and four children's books, and he is the recipient of the M. Krishnan Memorial Nature Writing Award and Sanctuary Asia Green Teacher Award, among others. He is an active part of resistance and community movements against ecocide and industrial violence in South India. He is also the founder-managing trustee of Palluyir Trust for Nature Education and Research. Yuvan resides in Chennai, India.